Empty
by Edgypoo
Summary: She wasn't herself during the project. In fact, she didn't feel like anybody. But that man, that odd man with untamed hair and childish grin, made her feel whole again. DarklawXBarnham, per the norm.


I remember our first meeting as if it were yesterday.

The day started off fairly normal. Well, as normal as it could be in our insane story. I arrived at the office earlier than usual, but did what I usually would. Polished reports, listened in on the trials, occasionally stopped by the garrison to make sure those ridiculous knights weren't fooling around again. It was a normal day. Of course, I knew to always expect something new. Every day I had another knight shuffle into my office to explain his own foolish mistake or to attempt to boast about catching some witch that had done little more than cause a mild disturbance.

Today's knight, though, was…. different.

Whenever a knight entered my office, I was always greeted with the scraping of metal against wood as they dragged their feet across the floor, clearly reluctant to face me. I knew very well that they were afraid of me. But this knight entered calmly, his pace even, his aura cool. I raised my head, and I remember dropping my quill.

I had never seen him before. He was new to the project. Probably only just got here yesterday, his eyes blank and almost confused as he looked at me. He was tall. Good posture. His eyes were sharp and narrow, his brows fixed in a slight scowl. A strong jaw and rugged hair that needed cutting, though it did look rather dashing untamed. I found him to be very handsome, and cleared my throat. He had been staring intensely, and when the sound reached him, he looked like he'd just woken from a trance. I thought nothing of it; it was a side-effect of the medicine, or a trick of the light. Nothing more.

He introduced himself as a man named Barnham. He was to be my subordinate. He said it was an honour to work under me, and was more than happy to do whatever I needed him to in order to help the towns people. I thanked him, and dismissed him to retrieve whatever he needed from his home to work in the office, as two more knights dragged in another desk for the other side of the room.

I dropped my gaze, ready to get back to work, but found I couldn't. My cheeks were stained pink, my pupils dilated. My hands shook so I couldn't even write. There was something about that man that was oddly… enticing. It was actually quite a fascinating feeling, and if it wasn't so distracting, I may have even found it pleasant. I shook such feelings from my head, shoving them down inside me. Barnham had been aesthetically pleasing; that was it. I couldn't possibly be interested in someone then, not when so much was going on. So I ignored these feelings.

* * *

There were times when they threatened to escape, of course. These kind of emotions didn't just disappear, much to my chagrin.

He didn't smile. In fact, for the first few months I knew him, his face never betrayed the slightest sliver of emotion. I admired his work ethic, his commitment, and as the months went on, I worked out other things about his personality.

He had a dog. A tiny little thing, all white and fluffy and small, and even I admitted to myself the appeal of having a pet. Someone to go home to, at least. It was lonely in my house. It was big and empty, and I only really used a couple of it's many rooms. I didn't know where he lived, but at least when he lived with that pup, he wasn't alone.

I discovered he was friends with the tavern owner, a boisterous, animated woman named Rouge. I discovered how the women adored him, how the men wanted to be him, how the children all looked up to him as they would a father. He used to spend time with a few of the knights that he trained with around the garrison, all cracking jokes by the gates and making familiar loutish comments. I walked past them once, and before he noticed I was there, a knight told a joke, and he laughed.

His eyes creased in the corners as he grinned, his eyes sparkling with mirth. His teeth were perfectly straight, no doubt through dental treatment as a child, and his face screwed up, making him look rather boyish. His laughter was soft and warm, the sound of it making my hairs stand up straight on end as goosebumps rippled my flesh, my stomach glowing with an odd, fuzzy feeling that made me shudder. My legs buckled under me, suddenly unstable, and I stumbled slightly over the uneven pavement. In a flash, Barnham rushed to my side, catching me in his arms. His hands wrapped around my forearms, pulling me to my full height once more. He was close, closer than I'd been to anybody in years now. I felt his breath brush my cheek, his hair tickling my neck. He smelt of sweat and soap and smoke from the fires, and I couldn't help but inhale deeply before throwing him off me, telling him I was fine, that I wasn't an invalid and was perfectly capable of walking by myself, thank you.

He looked almost hurt, before snapping back into his usual work persona, his face turning cold and emotionless once more. I felt my heart break that I'd hurt him, though I didn't have time to feel remorse. I chose to shove those feelings down, like I did with my love, my happiness, anything that wasn't like me.

But for those few years, I wasn't even me. Darklaw was cruel and calculated, and didn't think twice about hurting an employee that meant nothing to her. I wasn't Darklaw. But for that time, I didn't feel as though I was Eve either. I wasn't anybody back then, an empty husk of myself. Being alone was taking its toll on me. Some days, I wondered why I even got out of bed in the morning.

* * *

I feel into bed, and breathed a deep sigh. He turned to me, cracked a smile. He asked if I'd had a hard day. I said I had. He wrapped me in his arms, holding me close as I leaned into his chest. He was warm and comforting. I felt safe beside him. I was glad to be with him. He told me not to worry, that he was here, that he would always protect me, that he would take care of me. He promised, planting a kiss against my head, and I felt myself smile.

We talked all night, about nothing in particular. We kissed and held each other in an intimate embrace that only we shared. It was then when I felt like myself. When I was with him, I didn't have to wear that thick layer of armour I wore for the town. I didn't have to be Darklaw, or the Great Witch, or that lost little girl in the bell tower. With him, I was Eve. Nothing more or less. I was me.

* * *

And then I woke.

The bed was cold and empty. The pale white light that shone through the curtains showed that dawn was about to break. I rolled over, looking about my room. It was empty. I was alone, like I always was. He wasn't there. He wasn't with me.

I wished he was. I wished he would be with me, I wished he cared, I wished for so much. My father was gone. I had no friends, no family left. I was alone.

And yet…

I threw back the sheets, and got out of bed, like I did every morning. I got out of bed to go to work, to watch the trials, to visit the garrison to check on the knights.

I got out of bed for him.

* * *

 **AN: Current mood: Feeling sorry for Eve.**

 **Dammit I was meant to make this cute but it just got sad! New chapter of the Interview Challenge hasn't been started yet. We still need a hell of a lot of questions for another one.**

 **Please read and leave a review! This was a short piece, but positive or not, I always love reading feedback. Thanks for reading!**


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